Health care is one of the most complex and heavily regulated industries in Florida. As the industry has continued to expand, constant change has become the norm. Operating a health care business requires sophisticated legal counsel to navigate the many unique and complex challenges these entities encounter on a daily basis. Gunster’s Health Care lawyers are aware that this heavily regulated industry creates a variety of situations that can involve complex transactional and litigation challenges requiring state and federal regulatory experience.

Gunster’s Health Care law practice includes select attorneys and professionals who have medical and scientific backgrounds, as well as board certification in state and federal government and administrative law. This background helps our team to strive to deliver a unique perspective and dimensional knowledge when counseling clients. When appropriate, our Health Care attorneys draw upon the extensive experience of attorneys in other practices within the firm, such as guardianship, tax, corporate, labor and employment, immigration, business litigation, real estate and banking and financial services.

Gunster clients include a variety of health care industry participants, such as:

For-profit and nonprofit hospitals, health care systems and academic and university medical facilities

Our attorneys are dedicated to providing all types of state and federal regulatory advice and defense, including state licensure defense, fraud and abuse, antitrust, Stark law and HIPAA compliance. Gunster attorneys have advised clients on Medicare and Medicaid compliance, overpayment and recoupment. Members of the firm counsel clients on the practical application of policies and procedures relating to Federal Stark Law, Anti-Kickback, Anti-Markup and False Claims Act investigations. Our lawyers also provide legal counsel pertaining to health plan contracts and price fixing, and are involved in health care financing and leasing transactions with lending, banking and insurance institutions.

Gunster’s Health Care attorneys also represent physician groups, hospitals and other related organizations in a variety of traditional corporate transactions. These transactions include the purchase and sale of medical practices; integrated delivery system formation, mergers, acquisitions and affiliation agreements for medical groups and hospitals; and joint ventures between medical companies, hospitals and extended care facilities. Firm attorneys counsel clients regarding medical group/IPA organization and structuring, group formation and the integration of groups and provider networks to MSO, ACO and integrated delivery systems.

Gunster’s goal is to meet the needs of health care industry clients. Gunster structures hospital provider and risk compensation arrangements, provides regulatory advice, risk assessment and compliance strategies, as well as defends hospitals in an array of claims, including those pertaining to reimbursement, overpayment, risk funds, billing practices, RICO, antitrust violations and fraud. The firm negotiates and closes hospital purchase and sale transactions that involve extensive due diligence, licensing issues and Medicare/Medicaid certification. Our attorneys provide HIPAA advice and compliance. Our firm is committed to advising on employment related challenges and dispute resolution for a number of health care industry organizations.